


Gold Threads

by ForensicSpider98



Series: Love After the Fact [34]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alien Biology, Alien Cultural Differences, All this stress is bad for the baby, Altean Adam (Voltron), Altean Prince Lance (Voltron), Alternate Universe - Arranged Marriage, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Aromantic Asexual Pidge | Katie Holt, Balmeran Hunk (Voltron), Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/F, F/M, Galra Shiro (Voltron), Galran Prince Keith (Voltron), Gen, Gender-Neutral Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, M/M, Moral Ambiguity, Moral Dilemmas, Multi, Nonbinary Pidge | Katie Holt, Olkari Pidge | Katie Holt, Post-War, it's keith. keith is the baby
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-06
Updated: 2020-05-06
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:54:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,550
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24034627
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ForensicSpider98/pseuds/ForensicSpider98
Summary: Lance learns a bit more about Keith's past and Shiro observes his littermate in a new element.
Relationships: Adam/Shiro (Voltron), Alfor/Coran (Voltron), Allura/Lotor/Romelle (Voltron), Haggar/Zarkon (Voltron), Hunk & Pidge | Katie Holt, Keith/Lance (Voltron)
Series: Love After the Fact [34]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1635043
Comments: 36
Kudos: 210





	Gold Threads

“I just remembered,” Keith mutters as Lance’s hand finds his waist, pulls them close together on the dance floor. “I hate this.”

Lance laughs, kisses the tip of Keith’s nose, laughing harder as said nose scrunches up at the contact. “I really like dancing, actually.”

Keith grimaces as he steps on Lance’s toes. “Do you like bruised toes?”

“No,” Lance admits. “But… I like you, so none of it's really that bad.”

Keith’s ears flutter. He wants to kiss Lance, wants it for himself, but people are clearly watching them; he doesn’t have the courage.

“Do you really hate it?” Lance asks, face expressing some twist of smile and sadness.

“No. I just don’t like it.” Keith sighs, ears drooping just a bit. “It’s not the _worst_ thing I’ve done for royalty.”

“What’s the worst?” Lance asks, gliding along.

“Part of my training to join Shiro’s elite guard was to spend a movement in the Virmir Swamp. That was the worst. By the time it was over, I was basically one gigantic insect bite. They bit me through my clothes and managed to get under my armor. I just had to let them drink their fill and leave on their own.”

Lance laughs, spinning Keith out and back in. “That sounds awful!”

“To be fair, it was partially my fault. I was told not to take my helmet off while I slept but I was uncomfortable so…”

“So you took off your helmet and invited a swarm of insects into your armor?” Lance grins; they both fall into quiet laughter.

“Yes. I was anemic for a while. Shiro found it very funny.”

“You two seem very close.”

“Of course we’re close,” Keith argues, frowning slightly. “You’re close with your littermate.”

“Allura and I grew up together. You and Shiro didn’t. What is that like? Did it just happen, or…”

“Oh.” Keith hesitates, staring down at their moving feet. Lance pulls them a little closer together. “I was found by accident. Zarkon sent men to find my father, and they found me instead. Shiro led the search team.”

“And you just hit it off?” Lance whispers.

“He’s rather old not to have a mate. I think he was lonely. But he took me in as his charge for my first decaphoeb at the imperial compound, helping me adjust to society. It did cause a bit of gossip, but he’s only ever been my littermate.”

“Well I should hope so,” Lance says, keeping them in time. “You were even more of a kit then.”

“It’s not unusual to find a mate before adulthood. You just don’t actually _mate_ with them. But Shiro and I were never like that. He’s my littermate, not my lifemate."

“I see.” Lance frowned, brows crinkling. “Why would they assume you were Shiro’s baby mate or- Wow that’s so gross. I am _so. Gross_.”

Keith laughs. “You’re not gross. You’re a different species. Galra are a lot more communal than Alteans. Kits sleep with their mother or older littermates. Daibazaal is dangerous-”

“Yeah, the thing that turns things inside out, I remember.”

“Yes, among others. They all sleep in dens together.”

“So wait. You just picked Shiro to snuggle up to?”

“He was the biggest. It was instinct. Before that, I usually slept for a few vargas a couple times a day. I was entirely alone.”

“So you survived all alone as just a little kit?” Lance asks, squeezing Keith’s hand.

“Yeah… My kittenhood’s been a bit of a mess.”

The song ends and Lance pulls Keith close just long enough to kiss his cheek. “I’m sorry, beloved.”

“It’s fine. I have my mother now, sort of, and my littermate. And you. That part’s pretty great. Hey, Shiro.”

Lance’s cheeks burn beneath his scales, heat creeping up to the tips of his ears, capped with gold. He gently keeps an arm around Keith’s waist as he greets the Captain. To his surprise, Shiro's changed out of his customary armor into some sort of linen attire: a loose-fitting shirt with a sigil on the chest and loose, black pants tied at the waist. They look practical and comfortable, and Keith looks jealous. Lance is a little jealous, too.

“Hey, Shiro! Some of our friends are here! Do you wanna meet them?” Keith grins, bouncing a little on his toes, jealousy over in a second. His tail swings in wide arcs. Lance’s own smile is fond as Keith shows off for his brother.

“Lanval and Gloriana? I already met them. They seem lovely. Came over to greet me themselves, actually.”

“No, no. Not them. Pidge and Hunk.” Keith grins, tugging on Lance’s hand to where Pidge, Hunk, and another Balmera -presumably Shay, given her rounded belly- are standing, enjoying the festivities. Lance turns back to the captain with a grin before following after his spouse. Shiro smiles.

“Hey, guys. How’s it going?” Keith asks as Lance rushes past to hug their friends.

“I am tired of standing, but one does not turn down an invitation from King Alfor,” a female Balmeran says. “Hello, your Majesty. I am Shay, wife of Hunk. Forgive me if I do not bow.”

Keith smiles. “Hi. And don’t worry about it. Do you want me to find you a chair?” Keith waves over a servant before the woman can protest. “Could you please bring this poor woman a chair-”

“Kitty!” Keith waves off the servant, eyes the small child in Hunk’s arms, making grabby hands at him. “Kitty!”

Pidge cackles as Hunk tries to get his daughter to lower her arms. “Rosie we talked about this. Prince Yorak is not a kitty. He’s like Prince Lancel. You have to be respectful and-”

“KITTY!” 

Keith tenses, feeling the eyes of several dozen people now focused on him. There are only a few options he can choose, and he knows ‘curl into Lance’s side to avoid noise’ is what he’s expected to do, what Adam’s trained him to do. But also? Fuck it. Lance said he could be himself.

“You know what? Come here. I’m Kitty now.” Keith cautiously takes the child from Hunk, balances her on his hip as he chats with Pidge about her experiments with Balmeran crystals while Shiro chats with Hunk. Rosetta contents herself tugging on his braid, counting the gold threads in each section.

“Five! See, Kitty! Five!”

“I do see. Look at them all. Oh, how many are in this one?” Keith indicates a different section. Rosetta goes back to her counting.

Lance watches with only increasing fondness; Shiro watches Lance. He’d never expected to like the crown prince as much as he does. He’d left Altea with the belief that Lance wouldn’t do anything to harm his kit littermate, but now he believes Lance will love Keith as much as Keith loves him. 

Which he does. Even if he doesn’t know it. Keith’s too young, too inexperienced to understand his own feelings. But Lance clearly does, blue-and-pink eyes brimming with warmth as his spouse places his circlet in the little kit’s reaching hands.

“Oh, no! You don’t wanna-” Hunk winces as the gold crumples like foil in the Balmeran child’s hands. “-do that. I am so sorry!”

Keith watches, violet eyes wide with surprise as the kit molds the wad of crumpled gold, the ruby triangle gem partially obscured as she pulls the metal this way and that.

“She’s begun experimenting with her metalworking abilities,” Hunk explains, clearly terrified. 

Keith just watches. He doesn’t really care, even as Pidge grumbles about having to forge him a new circlet.

Well, he doesn’t care until Rosetta holds the ball of metal out to him, presenting as a gift. “For Kitty! Like it?”

“It-” Keith’s hopelessly endeared to you little girl. He hasn't been given many gifts in his life. “It’s beautiful. Thank you.”

He takes the ruined circlet turned treasured gift from the kit, cradling it to his chest with one hand while he squeezes her close with the other. “I’ll love it for always.”

“Keith, you’re a sucker,” Pidge declares, leaning forward to run their feelers over the metal. “Wow, her abilities are impressive. The integrity hasn’t been compromised at all! Where can I get one of these?”

“...A baby?” Keith asks, cocking his head. “I mean, give me a decaphoeb or two and you can borrow mine.”

“Like your baby would be good for anything,” Pidge scoffs. “They’d be cute, but useless. I need a little metalworker.”

Keith stares, cautiously holding the girl a little closer. “I honestly can’t tell if you're joking or not.”

Shiro laughs, watching the bantering get louder, Shay laughing from her chair as Pidge and Keith argue over whether or not his kits will be useful. He leans down to Lance, who is also being uncharacteristically quiet. “He seems happy.”

“He’s happy when he can be himself. That’s all he wants.”

“Thank you for giving him that. I'm glad he's happy with you.”

Lance smiles, steps in as Keith begins to get defensive regarding their future children. Shiro settles back to continue watching, leaning up against a pillar.

He has a task to complete tonight, but for now, he’ll enjoy the sight of his littermate having fun with other people.

Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Alfor slip away from the festivities.

**Author's Note:**

> Next time on Love After the Fact: Alfor spends time with an old friend.


End file.
